Divya Deshmukh, an 18-year-old Indian chess player, spoke out against misogyny and sexism in the game following the Tata Steel Masters in Wijk Aan Zee, the Netherlands. The teenage International Master discussed female chess players’ treatment during the tournament in an Instagram post.

I have wanted to address this for a while but was waiting for my tournament to end. I got told and also noticed how women in chess are often just taken for granted by spectators

Player from Nagpur, who won the Asian women’s chess championship last year.

“The most recent personal example of this would be that I felt proud of a few games I played in this tournament, which I felt were pretty good. “

I got told by people how the audience was not even bothered with the game, but instead focused on everything in the world, including my clothes, hair, accent, and every other irrelevant thing,” she wrote on Sunday in an Instagram post.

My most recent example of this on a personal level would be in this tournament, I played a few games which I felt were quite good and I was proud of them. I got told by people how the audience was not even bothered with the game but instead focused on every possible thing in the world: my clothes, hair, accent and every other irrelevant thing

Divya Deshmukh on her Instagram post on Sunday.

Divya Deshmukh finished the Challengers division in 12th place, losing to Leon Luke Mendonca in the 13th and final round with a score of 4.5. Divya made the first error in the complex match when she made an incorrect capture in the middle game. Things could have gone differently from there.

The teenager claimed that although female chess players were evaluated for reasons unrelated to their skill on the board, male players received their fair share of attention solely for their skill. “I was quite upset to hear this and I think is the sad truth that people when women play chess they often overlook how good they are, the games they play and their strength,” she said.

“I was quite disappointed to see how everything was discussed in my interviews (by the audience) except my games, very few people paid attention to it and it is quite a sad thing. I felt it was unfair in a way because if I go to any guy’s interview there would be way less judgement on a personal level, actual compliments about the game and the player,”

Even though women’s sports have made strides in terms of compensation, female athletes continue to face discriminatory treatment and inquiries about their attire. Deshmukh said women said women players are under-appreciated in general and often endure hatred.

Every irrelevant thing is focused on and hated on, while guys would get away with the same things. Women face this daily, and I’m barely 18. Over the years, I have met so much judgement, including hatred, for things that don’t even matter. I think women should start getting equal respect,” she said.